The First Century After Beatrice

by Amin Maalouf

Book Overview

A French entomologist, attending a symposium in Cairo, finds a cruious kind of bean being on a market stall. It is claimed the beans, derived from the scarab beetle, have magic powers; specifically... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0349105995
• ISBN13: 9780349105994
• Release Date: January 1994
• Publisher: Little Brown and Company
• Length: 208 Pages
• Weight: 0.40 lbs.

Customer Reviews

A beautiful book.

The First century after Beatrice was a perfect read. Short, making you want it more than anything too go on! Amin Maalouf writes melodies of words, sentances that are beautiful... His characters are clear and imaginable, but maintain a shadowy edge, as if a slight magic mist is with them at all times. The story is good. Believable. I don't want to use the term science fiction for fear of bringing robots into your head, it's not that at all. It is the best sort of science fiction. Brilliantly written, believable unreality. You are guaranteed to enjoy. Love Mari a xx

Gene cloning, gender relations, love of a father and husband

I have started reading Maalouf's books with Semekand and have always been impressed with the well-researched, perfectly-written historically based books of him. This time he compeletely changes his style and still handles of the best books I have ever read in my whole life... Not only the political estimations but also the characters are deeply thought. The way he criticised the enthusiasm of todays world on gene cloning is really impressive. If you want to think about the North-South relationships on the globe next century, this book will give you a certain perspective for sure. You should also read the gender relationships throughout the world from such a creative point of view... Definetely worth reading. I recommended this book to everybody I know.

A jewel of the French Science Fiction litterature

This scenario can happen any time now, and it's scary ! I'm sure it would make a wonderful movie. But the book only is worth reading: concise, moving, wonderfully written. A little book that you can read in once, remaining shaken for the rest of your life. A shame that it's out of print right now. Read it in French if you can! it's short and well written.

The most powerful novel I have read in ages

This is one of those books I am buying and giving to everyone I know. It is not only beautifully and powerfully written, it deals with a complex of issues that affects us all... population, our views of women, the ethics and implications of gene manipulation...it offers a future world that it is easy to recognize emerging from current events, and tells its story through a set of moving and very real characters. Not a long book, and but you will be thinking about it for a long time.

Excellent yet very different from his other books. I

This book, like all of Amin Maalouf's other books, is completely engulfing. The reader not only will not be able to put it down but at the same time is being educated on the subject. Unlike all of his other novels which are historical fictions (based on true facts) this one is about the future based on current facts regarding pre-selection of sexes and genes. Whenever I have read a book by Amin Maalouf I have learned about history or in this case about entomology and gene selection. This author's novels are very well researched and I strongly recommend them to anyone willing to put up with a few all-nighters with reading his books